[110][111][107], On June 22, 2022, several FBI agents approached him as he was leaving a New Mexico restaurant and, pursuant to a warrant, seized his phone. John Eastman Trying to Shield Jan. 6 Committee From 11,000 Documents In addition to his son Lee, he is survived by his wife, Josephine; another son, Jay; a daughter, Louise; two sisters, Louise Weed and Laura Malcolm; and 11 grandchildren. Its not clear when Eastman formally became Trumps attorney, but he revealed in a legal filing last month that he sometimes communicated directly with Trump, and the former president sent the attorney at least two hand-written notes.. [49], In August 2020, Newsweek published an op-ed by Eastman questioning 2020 vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris's eligibility for the office. Who is John Eastman and why is he important to the Jan. 6 hearings? ", "John Eastman Named National Organization For Marriage Chairman", "Claremont Institute - Board of Directors", "What the Hell Happened to the Claremont Institute? Trump lawyer John Eastman facing probe by California state bar Eastman wasnt shy about his beliefs: He spoke at a Trump rally near the White House just hours before the January 6 riot, telling a crowd of Trump supporters we know there was fraud and election officials had ignored or violated state law, while he stood alongside Rudy Giuliani (Eastman has argued the rally, unlike the riot, was peaceful). As the House January 6 panel unpacks the results of its months-long probe, lawmakers are expected to spend part of their Thursday hearing examining the role of John Eastman, a once-obscure legal scholar who vaulted into former President Donald Trumps inner circle ahead of the Capitol riot by pushing dubious legal strategies to keep Trump in office. [36] Eastman finished second in the three-way Republican primary with 34.2% of the vote, behind Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley, who received 47.3%. Last week, Carter ruled 440 records were privileged but ordered Eastman to hand over another 159. Have a tip or story idea? [96] Eastman relinquished nearly 8,000 emails to the committee in February 2022 but asserted privilege for about 11,000 others. Eastman emailed Giuliani, saying "I've decided that I should be on the pardon list if that is still in the works." The Bar's committee chair said, "For California attorneys, adherence to the U.S. and California Constitutions is their highest legal duty,"[123] adding Eastman, "violated this duty in furtherance of an attempt to usurp the will of the American people and overturn election results for the highest office in the land an egregious and unprecedented attack on our democracy for which he must be held accountable. John Eastman, Brother-in-Law of Paul McCartney, Dies at 83 - TheWrap As part of their preparations for the case, Mr. Eastman suggested that his brother-in-law wear a suit and tie to court. During the 2020 presidential campaign, Eastman wrote a controversial op-ed in August 2020 that falsely suggested the then-presumed Democratic nominee for U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris was not an American citizen and thus not legally eligible for the position. In March, federal Judge David Carter called Eastman and Trumps post-election efforts a coup in search of a legal theory, and argued its more likely than not that President Trump and Dr. Eastman dishonestly conspired to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress., Dr. John Eastman, the mediocre lawyer who apparently participated in a treasonous effort to veto the 2020 U.S. Presidential popular vote and electoral count, resides in Santa Fe, which annoys many . Eastman also sent to Republican senator Mike Lee a six-point plan of action for Pence to throw out the electors from seven states to keep Trump in power, which Lee rejected. John C. Eastman, a conservative legal scholar from California, came up with a plan that would . No law professor played a bigger role in Donald Trump's plot to overturn the election than John Eastman. [30], He testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2014 arguing that President Barack Obama's unilateral suspension of deportation for undocumented immigrants was unconstitutional. State Bar Announces John Eastman Ethics Investigation - The State Bar The California bar directly connects Eastmans speech to the insurrection, saying he contributed to provoking a crowd to assault and breach the Capitol to intimidate then-Vice President [Mike] Pence and prevent the electoral count from proceeding., New York University law school professor and legal ethic expert Stephen Gillers termed the accusations against Eastman, "scathing," and that the Bar was charging him with failure to support the country's and California's constitutions, despite taking an oath to do so and, "The allegation that Eastman is guilty of 'moral turpitude'," is an attack on his personal and professional character. Attorney John Eastman (left) speaks next to Then-President Donald Trump's attorney Rudy Giuliani in Washington, D.C., January 6, 2021. Trump in recent weeks has told confidants that he sees no reason to defend the lawyer who tried to help him overturn the 2020 . Some of the records sought by the January 6 panel could offer new insight into Eastmans work. On June 27, Eastman asked a federal judge to compel the government to return his phone and destroy its records of the phone's contents. Trump lawyers who fought election results saw Supreme Court Justice According to the warrant, the phone was to be taken to a forensic lab of the Department of Justices Office of Inspector General. In the months following the election, however, the Trump campaign received information from numerous credible sources, including Attorney General of the United States William Barr and members of Trumps inner circle of advisors, that there was no evidence of widespread election fraud or illegality that could have affected the outcome of the election, the notice states. ", "Some questions for Kamala Harris about eligibility | Opinion", "Editor's Note: Eastman's Newsweek column has nothing to do with racist birtherism", "Trump campaign official pushes baseless Newsweek op-ed claiming Harris may not be VP-eligible", "Trump stokes 'birther' conspiracy theory about Kamala Harris", "Trump Encourages Racist Conspiracy Theory About Kamala Harris", "Yes, Kamala Harris is eligible to be vice president | Opinion", "About That Right-Wing Argument That Kamala Harris Isn't A Citizen", "The Lawyer Behind the Memo on How Trump Could Stay in Office", "Trump and his GOP loyalists seek to pile on Supreme Court election challenge", "State of Texas, plaintiff, v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, State of Georgia, State of Michigan, and State of Wisconsin, defendants", "Supreme Court Rejects Texas Challenge to Biden's Victory in Presidential Election", "Supreme Court Rejects Texas Suit Seeking to Subvert Election", "The military-intelligence veterans who helped lead Trump's campaign of disinformation", "Trump Lawyer Cited 'Heated Fight' Among Justices Over Election Suits", "Email to Giuliani reveals plan to keep Trump in office on Jan. 6, court records show", "Trump's pressure on Georgia election officials raises legal questions", "Jan. 6th hearing: How Eastman tried to gat Pence to reject electoral votes", "Pence Reached His Limit With Trump. Carter wrote that Trump and Eastman likely conspired in criminal obstruction of Congress, adding, "If Dr. Eastman and President Trumps plan had worked, it would have permanently ended the peaceful transition of power, undermining American democracy and the Constitution. ", "John Eastman, who pushed a plan to reject Electoral College results, asked for a pardon shortly after Jan. 6", "Eastman sought White House pardon after Jan. 6", "Ex-Law Professor Says His Words at 'Save America' Rally Did Not Incite U.S. Capitol Siege", "Trump lawyer John Eastman: Rally, insurrection not connected", "Rallies ahead of Capitol riot were planned by established Washington insiders", "F.B.I. John L. Eastman, McCartneys Lawyer in Beatles Strife, Dies at 83, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/15/arts/music/john-l-eastman-dead.html. The Notice of Disciplinary Charges alleges that Mr. Eastman violated this duty in furtherance of an attempt to usurp the will of the American people and overturn election results for the highest office in the land an egregious and unprecedented attack on our democracy for which he must be held accountable, Cardona said. [32][33][34], On February 1, 2010, Eastman resigned as dean of the Chapman University School of Law to pursue the Republican nomination for California Attorney General. Carter noted one email in particular that contained what he found was likely evidence of a crime and ordered it disclosed under the crime-fraud exception to the attorney-client privilege. John Eastman, an entertainment lawyer and brother of Paul McCartney's first wife, Linda, nabbed a Carnegie Hill co-op for $26.5 million, property records show. His father, who had changed his name from Leopold Epstein, set up a successful legal practice representing high-profile musicians, artists and writers, among them the bandleader Tommy Dorsey and the songwriters Harold Arlen and Hal David. Eastman is accused of making false and misleading statements regarding alleged election fraud including claims he made at a rally at the Ellipse outside the White House that preceded the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. [74][75][76][77][78] Pence later released a letter stating he would not attempt to intervene in the certification process, citing Luttig by name, who later said it was "the highest honor of my life" to be involved in preserving the Constitution. The court had already rejected a major election challenge, Texas v. Pennsylvania, 13 days earlier, and the participants in Eastman's email exchange were discussing whether to file papers in the hopes that four U.S. Supreme Court justices would agree to hear a Wisconsin case. The January 6 committee subpoenaed Eastman in November. [56], This op-ed was cited by the New York Times as helping Eastman come to the attention of Jenna Ellis, a Trump campaign adviser. God do I love this guy. Facing Disbarment In California, Trump Lawyer John Eastman Speaks Up [18][19] On March 28, 2022, federal judge David O. Carter found Eastman, along with Trump, was more likely than not to have "dishonestly conspired to obstruct the joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021". John was a great man, Mr. McCartney wrote on Twitter last week, along with a photo of him with Mr. Eastman in yoga poses. As a result of information received from credible sources and numerous court rulings, by no later than on or about December 9, 2020, respondent knew, or was grossly negligent in not knowing, that there was no evidence upon which a reasonable attorney would rely of election fraud or illegality that could have affected the outcome of the election, and that there was no evidence upon which a reasonable attorney would rely that the election had been stolen by the Democratic Party or other parties acting in a coordinated conspiracy to fraudulently steal the election from Trump, the notice continues. "[123], On January 9, 2021, the chairman of Chapman's board of trustees and two other members (including former Democratic Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez) called on the university's president and provost and the law school's dean "to promptly take action against Eastman for his role in the events of Jan. He asserted she could not be a U.S. citizen by birth despite being born in Oakland, California, if neither of her parents was a permanent resident at the time of her birth. [23], In 1989, prior to attending law school, Eastman served as the director of Congressional and public affairs at the United States Commission on Civil Rights. ", "Here's Kamala Harris' birth certificate. That was what Dr Eastman was urging. Eastman attorney Randall Miller said in a lengthy statement that Eastman "disputes 'every aspect' of the action that has been filed against him by the State Bar," and alleged the charges were. At Wikipedia, don't even ask. UpdateJan. The strategy hinged partly on a dubious plan to get swing-state Republicans to sign off on alternate electors falsely deeming Trumpnot Bidento be the winner of their states: In a set of December 2020 emails to one Pennsylvania GOP lawmaker, Eastman suggested legislators could assert the right to appoint an alternate slate of electors or subtract mail-in ballots from Trump and Bidens totals at a prorated amount.. The request came a few days after a heated exchange between Herschmann and Eastman that ended with Herschmann suggesting that Eastman hire a criminal defense lawyer. On that day, Eastman emailed a Pence aide claiming the attack on the Capitol happened because the vice president did not do what was necessary, the Washington Post reported. He was a dean and professor at the Chapman University School of Law. The entertainment lawyer John L. Eastman in 2011. [26], Eastman served as an attorney for the State of South Dakota, representing it in a denied petition to the U.S. Supreme Court in a constitutional challenge to federal spending. Kowalke and NJP lawyer Goriune Dudukgian argued Eastman's lifetime membership in the far-right group made him disloyal and therefore ineligible to hold office in Alaska under the state . [15], On January 6, 2021, Eastman presented a speech at the White House Trump rally that preceded the 2021 United States Capitol attack. The lawyer spoke at Trumps rally that day at the Ellipse. The case was settled; the terms were not disclosed, but Mr. McCartney has been registering the American ownership of those rights under MPL. [24] He was also the unsuccessful 1990 Republican candidate for the United States House of Representatives in California's 34th congressional district. [106], On June 7, Carter ruled that Eastman must disclose an additional 159 sensitive documents to the committee. 'Coup Memo' Lawyer Loses Bid To Hold Up Records He Warns - HuffPost Conservative lawyer John Eastman was told to 'get a great f-ing 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Pompeo calls $31 trillion national debt indecent at CPAC, Trump recites Pledge of Allegiance in collaboration on new song with J6 Prison Choir, Bidens laughable, late-to-the-game crackdown on massive COVID fraud, 2024 presidential hopeful Nikki Haley heckled by Trump supporters at CPAC, made similar statements outside the White House on Jan. 6, 2021.
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